Transforming Young People into Regular Voters
Press Release - April 23, 2002
University Park, Pa. - The reason for low voter turnout among young people may be less apathy than simple inertia, says a Penn State researcher. If they can be persuaded to register and vote for the first time, the chances are good that they will pick up the habit and keep voting regularly.
Although young adults coming from affluent, politically active families tend to have higher rates of turnout, only a minority of them votes in their first eligible election. However, they are more likely to become regular voters in their twenties than young adults from poorer or less political involved families, notes Dr. Eric Plutzer, associate professor of political science and sociology.
Surprisingly, however, once young citizens vote once or twice, they tend to vote habitually in future elections, even if they previously professed ignorance or apathy.
"Policies and programs intended to spark young people's interest in politics may not be nearly as effective as initiatives that somehow get young people to register and to vote once, even if they go kicking and screaming," he says.
Plutzer is the author of "Becoming a Habitual Voter: Inertia, Resources, and Growth in Young Adulthood," published in the current issue of American Political Science Review. He used data from the classic Student-Parent Socialization Study, in which high school seniors and one or both of their parents were interviewed in 1965, 1973 and 1982. The 1973 interview explored turnout during the 1968 and 1972 elections, while the 1982 survey weighed voting patterns in 1976 and 1980.
"Lots of studies ask young people why they don't vote, and they say they are not interested or that they see no benefit. So the traditional response has been to show young people how important government is in their lives and how crucial it is to vote in order to preserve democracy," Plutzer notes. "It's exactly like asking somebody why they don't buy a certain brand of auto, to which customers reply that they don't know much about it and it doesn't appeal to them. Any good salesperson knows that the key is not just to provide more information but instead to get a reluctant customer into the car once. This is why manufacturers sell cars to rental agencies so cheaply."
The initial reluctance to vote may be less due to disinterest and the perceived irrelevance of government as much as it is due to the fear that voting will be complicated and make young people feel incompetent because they are unfamiliar with both the mechanics of voting machines and with candidates and political parties, Plutzer says.
Once young voters are registered and vote once, they realize that voting is easy and even satisfying. Furthermore, that first trip to the polls is a kind of adult rite of passage that can result in positive reinforcement from friends, family and co-workers. As young adults settle into jobs and marriages, they tend to gravitate toward peer groups with relatively higher levels of political knowledge and voter turnout, the Penn State researcher says.
Once they become habitual voters, personal setbacks such as unemployment
or severe hardship act as only temporary interruptions to voting. Even
when they become disenchanted with the party or ideology of their youth,
they still vote, Plutzer adds.
--- **pab**
EDITORS: Dr. Plutzer is at (814) 865-6576 or exp12@psu.edu.
This press release courtesy of Penn State's Department of Public Information
Last modified: 09/10/07 | Contact Webmaster
